Sign-In
Cart
Born from Catastrophe: Supernovae and the Creation of Everything We Know
Paperback
Series: Science and Cosmos
Please select the version of book you would like to purchase.
ISBN13: 9798251227475
Publisher: Independently Published
Published: Mar 8 2026
Pages: 322
Weight: 0.95
Height: 0.67 Width: 6.00 Depth: 9.00
Language: English
Publisher: Independently Published
Published: Mar 8 2026
Pages: 322
Weight: 0.95
Height: 0.67 Width: 6.00 Depth: 9.00
Language: English
The iron in your blood was forged in the nuclear furnace of a dying star. The gold in your jewelry was born in the collision of neutron stars so violent it sent ripples through spacetime itself. The carbon in your DNA survived a stellar explosion and a billion-year journey through space before becoming part of you.
Born from Catastrophe reveals the extraordinary truth behind these statements: we are not just made of stardust, but of stardust created through the most violent events in the universe. Drawing on cutting-edge astrophysical research, Boris Kriger takes readers on a journey from the first stars to modern theories of cosmic chemical evolution, showing how stellar explosions, neutron star collisions, and black hole formation have shaped the chemical richness that makes life possible.
Based on peer-reviewed research, Born from Catastrophe presents the fragility argument: that our existence depends not just on suitable astronomical conditions but on the fundamental physics of the universe being structured to permit explosive nucleosynthesis. We live in a cosmos balanced on the edge between creation and destruction, where violence becomes the engine of complexity.
From the neutrino bursts that power supernova explosions to the gravitational waves detected from merging black holes, from failed supernovae that remove heavy elements from circulation to the hypervelocity stars flung across the galaxy by cosmic catastrophes, Kriger weaves together the latest discoveries in astronomy and physics to reveal a universe far more violent - and far more creative - than everyday experience suggests.
Written for the intelligent general reader, Born from Catastrophe requires no mathematical background but demands careful attention to ideas that will transform how you understand your place in the cosmos. This is the story of how destruction becomes creation, how chaos enables complexity, and how the most violent events in nature produced the very elements that make wonder possible. KEYWORDS
Supernovae - Stellar Evolution - Nuclear Astrophysics - Chemical Evolution - Cosmic Violence - Neutron Stars - Element Formation
Based on peer-reviewed research, Born from Catastrophe presents the fragility argument: that our existence depends not just on suitable astronomical conditions but on the fundamental physics of the universe being structured to permit explosive nucleosynthesis. We live in a cosmos balanced on the edge between creation and destruction, where violence becomes the engine of complexity.
From the neutrino bursts that power supernova explosions to the gravitational waves detected from merging black holes, from failed supernovae that remove heavy elements from circulation to the hypervelocity stars flung across the galaxy by cosmic catastrophes, Kriger weaves together the latest discoveries in astronomy and physics to reveal a universe far more violent - and far more creative - than everyday experience suggests.
Written for the intelligent general reader, Born from Catastrophe requires no mathematical background but demands careful attention to ideas that will transform how you understand your place in the cosmos. This is the story of how destruction becomes creation, how chaos enables complexity, and how the most violent events in nature produced the very elements that make wonder possible. KEYWORDS
Supernovae - Stellar Evolution - Nuclear Astrophysics - Chemical Evolution - Cosmic Violence - Neutron Stars - Element Formation
Also from
Kriger, Boris
Freedom from Taxes: Introduction of Automated Payment Transaction Tax and Universal Basic Income
Kriger, Boris
Paperback
$9.60
The Law of Imperative Uncertainty: Why Any Complex World Requires Uncertainty
Kriger, Boris
Paperback
$23.88
Foundations of Intellectual Substrate Mining: A Methodology for Extracting Formal Laws from Raw Wisdom
Kriger, Boris
Paperback
$28.80
Spinoza, Evolution, and the Model Trap: Why We Cannot Perceive Reality Directly
Kriger, Boris
Paperback
$26.40
Irrational Reason and Rational Faith: Pascal and the Structural Limits of Rationality
Kriger, Boris
Paperback
$22.56
The Dawn of Shared Intelligence: How Autonomous Technology Will Reshape Civilization
Kriger, Boris
Paperback
$28.80
The Next Sexual Revolution: Ideas of Wilhelm Reich in the Age of Artificial Intimacy
Kriger, Boris
Paperback
$16.80
Homo Symbolicus: Ernst Cassirer, the Philosopher Who Won the Argument and Lost the Century
Kriger, Boris
Paperback
$30.00
Homo Symbolicus: Ernst Cassirer, Der Philosoph, Der Die Debatte Gewann Und Das Jahrhundert Verlor
Kriger, Boris
Paperback
$35.95
The Kingdom of Satire: Jonathan Swift and the Folly of the Perfectly Reasonable
Kriger, Boris
Paperback
$31.20
Also in
Astronomy & Space
Machine Intelligence and the Imaginal Realm: Spiritual Freedom and the Re-Animation of Matter
Lafitte, Luke
Paperback
From $14.99
Feynman's Lost Lecture: The Motion of Planets Around the Sun [With CDROM]
Goodstein, David L.
Paperback
$10.99
The Self-Actualizing Cosmos: The Akasha Revolution in Science and Human Consciousness
Laszlo, Ervin
Paperback
From $9.99
The Edge of Space-Time: Particles, Poetry, and the Cosmic Dream Boogie
Prescod-Weinstein, Chanda
Hardcover
$28.80
Lost in Space: 5,000 Facts for Navigating the Universe
Tyson, Neil Degrasse
Walker, Lindsey Nyx
Hardcover
$38.00
Just Visiting This Planet, Revised and Updated for the Twenty-First Century: Further Scientific Adventures of Merlin from Omniscia
Tyson, Neil Degrasse
Hardcover
$28.49
Astronomy 101, 2nd Edition: From Gravitational Waves and Merging Black Holes to New Exoplanets and Asteroid Samples, Key Theories, Discoveries, and Fa
Petersen, Carolyn Collins
Hardcover
$17.10
Open Space: From Earth to Eternity--The Global Race to Explore and Conquer the Cosmos
Ariosto, David
Hardcover
$31.50
Ancient Astrology in Theory and Practice: A Manual of Traditional Techniques, Volume I: Assessing Planetary Condition
George, Demetra
Paperback
$61.25
A City on Mars: Can We Settle Space, Should We Settle Space, and Have We Really Thought This Through?
Weinersmith, Zach
Weinersmith, Kelly
Paperback
$19.00
A Brief Tour of Higher Consciousness: A Cosmic Book on the Mechanics of Creation
Bentov, Itzhak
Paperback
$14.24
Classical Mythology of the Constellations: Timeless Tales of the Starry Night Sky
Giesecke, Annette
Hardcover
$28.50
Ojibwe Sky Star Map - Constellation Guidebook: An Introduction to Ojibwe Star Knowledge
Lee, Annette Sharon
Wilson, William Peter
Gawboy, Carl
Paperback
$19.98
Chasing the Northern Lights: Everything You Need to Know to See Nature's Greatest Light Show
Dk Travel
Hardcover
$23.75
The Martians: The True Story of an Alien Craze That Captured Turn-Of-The-Century America
Baron, David
Hardcover
$28.49
Bringing Columbia Home: The Untold Story of a Lost Space Shuttle and Her Crew
Leinbach, Michael D.
Ward, Jonathan H.
Paperback
$18.04
Our Moon: How Earth's Celestial Companion Transformed the Planet, Guided Evolution, and Made Us Who We Are
Boyle, Rebecca
Paperback
$20.90
Take Me to Your Leader: Perspectives on Your First Alien Encounter (Large Print Edition)
Tyson, Neil DeGrasse
Hardcover
$56.55
Night Sky Guide 2026: North America's Skies Month by Month from the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada
Mortillaro, Nicole
Paperback
$16.10
Ripples on the Cosmic Ocean: An Environmental History of Our Place in the Solar System
deGroot, Dagomar
Hardcover
$30.40
Through the Glass Ceiling to the Stars: The Story of the First American Woman to Command a Space Mission
Ward, Jonathan H.
Collins, Eileen M., USAF (Retired)
Hardcover
$26.59
The New Guys: The Historic Class of Astronauts That Broke Barriers and Changed the Face of Space Travel
Bagby, Meredith
Paperback
$20.89
Earthrise: Inside Artemis II, the Groundbreaking Human Mission Into Deep Space
Larsen, John
Hansen, Jeremy
Hardcover
$32.30
How to Read Nature: Awaken Your Senses to the Outdoors You've Never Noticed
Gooley, Tristan
Paperback
$16.10
Life After Life: The Bestselling Original Investigation That Revealed Near-Death Experiences
Moody, Raymond
Paperback
$16.14
The Shortest History of Our Universe: The Unlikely Journey from the Big Bang to Us
Baker, David
Paperback
$16.10
The Six: The Extraordinary Story of the Grit and Daring of America's First Women Astronauts
Grush, Loren
Paperback
From $11.99
Dakota/Lakota Star Map Constellation Guidebook: An Introduction to D(L)akota Star Knowledge
O'Rourke, Charlene
Lee, Annette Sharon
Rock, Jim
Paperback
$20.00
The Ultraview Effect: What We Can Learn from Astronauts about Awe, Humility, and Exploring the Unknown
Weibel, Deana L.
Hardcover
$23.70
Smithsonian Atlas of Space: A Map to the Universe from the Big Bang to the Future
Launius, Roger D.
Hardcover
$57.00
The Grand Cosmic Story: An Illustrated Timeline 13.8 Billion Years and Beyond
Garlick, Mark A.
Lomberg, Jon
Siegel, Ethan
Hardcover
$57.00
The Elegant Universe: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for the Ultimate Theory
Greene, Brian
Paperback
$18.99
The Natural Navigator: The Rediscovered Art of Letting Nature Be Your Guide
Gooley, Tristan
Paperback
$17.06
Do Your Ears Pop in Space? and 500 Other Surprising Questions about Space Travel
Mullane, R. Mike
Paperback
$15.15
A Brief Welcome to the Universe: A Pocket-Sized Tour
Strauss, Michael A.
Tyson, Neil Degrasse
Gott, J. Richard
Paperback
$14.20
To Infinity and Beyond: A Journey of Cosmic Discovery
Tyson, Neil Degrasse
Walker, Lindsey Nyx
Hardcover
$28.50
National Geographic Stargazer's Atlas: The Ultimate Guide to the Night Sky
National Geographic
Wei-Haas, Maya
Trefil, James
Hardcover
$61.75
Welcome to the Universe: An Astrophysical Tour
Strauss, Michael A.
Gott, J. Richard
Tyson, Neil Degrasse
Hardcover
$39.90
Time Travel in Einstein's Universe: The Physical Possibilities of Travel Through Time
Gott, J. Richard
Paperback
$18.99
A Jesuit's Guide to the Stars: Exploring Wonder, Beauty, and Science
Consolmagno, Guy J., Sj
Paperback
$23.74
There Are Places in the World Where Rules Are Less Important Than Kindness: And Other Thoughts on Physics, Philosophy and the World
Rovelli, Carlo
Paperback
From $11.99
Back to Earth: What Life in Space Taught Me about Our Home Planet--And Our Mission to Protect It
Stott, Nicole
Hardcover
$28.50
Cloudy with a Chance of Starships: How the Drake Equation Reveals the Odds of Life in the Cosmos
Rasmussen, Seven
Hardcover
$28.45
Webb's Universe: The Space Telescope Images That Reveal Our Cosmic History
Aderin-Pocock, Maggie
Hardcover
$38.00
Unseen Universe: Space as You've Never Seen It Before from the James Webb Space Telescope
Harper, Caroline
Hardcover
$34.19
The Natural Navigator, Tenth Anniversary Edition: The Rediscovered Art of Letting Nature Be Your Guide
Gooley, Tristan
Paperback
$18.95
The Pale Blue Data Point: An Earth-Based Perspective on the Search for Alien Life
Willis, Jon
Hardcover
$24.70
The Beginner's Guide to Constructing the Universe: The Mathematical Archetypes of Nature, Art, and Science
Schneider, Michael S.
Paperback
$18.99
Cosmic Queries: Startalk's Guide to Who We Are, How We Got Here, and Where We're Going
Tyson, Neil DeGrasse
Hardcover
$28.50
Hamlet's Mill: An Essay Investigating the Origins of Human Knowledge and Its Transmissions Through Myth
de Santillana, Giorgio
Von Dechend, Hertha
Paperback
$27.50
Painting the Cosmos: How Art and Science Intersect to Reveal the Secrets of the Universe
Imara, Nia
Paperback
$23.70
The Universe Story: From the Primordial Flaring Forth to the Ecozoic Era--A Celebration of the Unfol
Swimme, Brian
Paperback
$19.99
Rocket Men: The Daring Odyssey of Apollo 8 and the Astronauts Who Made Man's First Journey to the Moon
Kurson, Robert
Paperback
$21.85
Reentry: Spacex, Elon Musk, and the Reusable Rockets That Launched a Second Space Age
Berger, Eric
Hardcover
$30.35
Spirits Dancing: The Night Sky, Indigenous Knowledge, and Living Connections to the Cosmos
Lee, Annette S.
Novitsky, Travis
Paperback
$18.95
To Infinity and Beyond: A Journey of Cosmic Discovery
Walker, Lindsey Nyx
Tyson, Neil Degrasse
Paperback
$19.80
The Random Universe: How Models and Probability Help Us Make Sense of the Cosmos
Jaffe, Andrew H.
Hardcover
$30.88
Constellations: The Story of Space Told Through the 88 Known Star Patterns in the Night Sky
Schilling, Govert
Hardcover
$30.40
The Backyard Stargazer's Bible: Discover Constellations, Galaxies, Nebulae, Meteorites, and More
Ridpath, Ian
McIntyre, Mary
Federman, Rachel
Hardcover
$36.00
Photographic Atlas of the Moon: A Comprehensive Guide for the Amateur Astronomer
Reeves, Robert
Hardcover
$47.45
The Complete Book of Spacecraft: Rockets, Shuttles, Satellites, and Space Stations
Sivolella, Davide
Gorn, Michael H.
Hardcover
$38.00
The Extraterrestrial Species Almanac: The Ultimate Guide to Greys, Reptilians, Hybrids, and Nordics
Campobasso, Craig
Paperback
$20.85
Pillars of Creation: How the James Webb Telescope Unlocked the Secrets of the Cosmos
Panek, Richard
Hardcover
$27.55
The 4 Percent Universe: Dark Matter, Dark Energy, and the Race to Discover the Rest of Reality
Panek, Richard
Paperback
$19.99
The Martians: The True Story of an Alien Craze That Captured Turn-Of-The-Century America
Baron, David
Paperback
$17.99
Until the End of Time: Mind, Matter, and Our Search for Meaning in an Evolving Universe
Greene, Brian
Paperback
From $11.99